Give thanks

So we took the desktop computer in for service on Tuesday. I'm lost without it. Then Wednesday my left arm goes numb. Then Friday my neck gets really stiff. All this leads up to a trip to urgent care sat night after calling the nurse hotline. The nurse goes through a battery of questions including have you been abused and do you think you are having a heart attack? A. Does anyone admit to the first? But no. And b. Should I think I'm having a heart attack? Well that would be why I'm calling miss. My left arm is numb and I can't move my neck. Any who then I go to the UC and again am I being abused? Again no. Then have you been treated for cancer. Again no but should I? Geesh now I'm really worried. But I am less worried when they leave me in a room alone for the next hour. Diagnosis- pinched nerve. A little concerned I can't tell them how this happened but it should work itself out in a few days or a weekish. So from this day forward when I wake up and my desktop is working I will give thanks. And when my neck is working I will give thanks. And when I can feel my arm I will give thanks.

We've got a winner!

Picked up Stampington's HandCrafted magazine a few days ago. Very nice.

Finally saw the last Harry Potter. Interestingly enough, it poured buckets on the drive there and the electric went off as the movie was starting... we waiting 20 min with it flashing on and off before it finally worked. And it was so worth it to watch in 3D. Why don't they reshow them all in order and let us spend a whole week coming to watch?

The tally is in and me, mom and Yo each cleared... wait for it... $35.90 at the yard sale! Yikes! Bub however cleaned up the floor with us pulling in about $150 as I recall. Sigh. Did I mention it was 100 degrees... 2 days...

I am trying to finish reading The Infidel. We discussed it Saturday at book club and I still can't take more than 30 minutes at a time reading it. It is so complicated and depressing. Strike that. Oppressive.

We went back to Elevation Church on Sunday. I'm really liking it. Guest speaker, Brian Ford from Beechmont spoke. He runs a company in Milford. He talked about helping people find their values and purpose. Truth, Teaching and Team.

Bub's finished 3rd in his fishing team and qualified for state! He won 1st place in the last tourney.

Olive you!

Monday Yo, mom, Bub's and I went down to Ludlow to dine at Olives. The garlic cheese bread was more like pizza dough with a little seasoning. We could have done without because the salads were fabulous. I ordered the white pizza, Bub's had the Fettuccine Alfredo with shrimp. The Alfredo could have been from anywhere but the white pizza was exceptional. I finished it off this morning.
My 2nd visit to water aerobics was just as strenuous. A great workout.

A few days away

Spending at few days at Yo's. Marina thought she was going to get left. Stared at me the whole time I packed up my art supplies. Came over Friday after zumba to help prepare for her and my mother's not red hat tea and pool party. (Apparently if you call yourself a red hat club you must pay hefty dues or they come after you. Who knew?) We went in search of a water aerobic worthy bathing suit that evening since my tankini did not do the job. I tried a few on shopping with Hubs but, oh my, one piece suits are visually disgusting. So I was delighted to find one at Jcpenneys and I gave it a test run Saturday at the pool party. Made a stop at Anthropology and Yo found me a pair of clogs marked down from $160 to $20. Seriously. Also an Odille top. Lovely.

Saturday's tea was gorgeous.  After kick starting the day off at 5 am - an hour I have not seen in a few months- we amped up on Starbucks when we picked up the cupcakes from A Sweet Life. This lady is really running one of my favorite shops. Cupcakes and handcrafted items. Since 3 friends are having girls in the next few months I can't help picking things up every time I go here.
It is always rewarding to put work into something people really appreciate and rarely get to enjoy and these ladies were so appreciative.
Then about 4 we headed to pick up bubs from a ranch in Indiana. A new friend he met through the fishing club. This guy is super polite and his parents invited us to come out early for a tour on the ATV. My sister, mom, and I drove out a little over an hour and enjoyed the views.

We stopped by steak and shake and took bubs to meet hubs at bass pro so they could fish a tournament at midnight. They won second place overall and big bass.

Sunday morning- I am alone dog sitting the dogs while Yo and her hubs go to the movies and my parents, who also stayed, went home. Six dogs all currently sleeping while i catch up on blogging and paper making.

Etc

Last Saturday my mom and I ran to Valley Thrift since she had 2 $5 free coupons. I picked up a Matt & Nat purse for $2. they seem to run about $100 on their website. I have a plain black on in my 'collection' already.
I also picked up a $2. little wooden hand purse that is made of sewn ribbons. Very cute.
A few books. Some I've read. Some I need to.

I finished reading The Last Summer (of you and me) by Ann Brashares. A perfect summer romance, friendship, sister love kind of read. Heartbreaking and hopeful and romantic and ahhh. It's a good one.

Life

We tried a new church today. Elevation community church. It's difficult and exhilarating to change. Difficult to think of all the inconveniences, new names, and such. Exhilarating to think of all the people we might meet, sharing in more than just a Sunday morning church life and such.

Hubs and I were raised in a southern baptist country smallish church of say 200 on Sunday morning. Our families all went there and as we grew up these people became who we did life with. Heck hubs and I meet there. We were Mary and Joseph when we were about 3. Then we went away to college started dating and went to a more professional, uptight, televised church that frankly never felt like home. When we migrated back to Ohio we first went to the church our youth pastor had just started because our childhood church experienced a nasty split. When we bought a house and landed jobs we tried a church in that small town but that really didnt work. We never made friends, the music was stuffy and the minister just didnt jive with us.  So we tried a different church some people we knew from our childhood church attended and my sister,Yo, met us there. That worked for a few years until we had bubs. We watched the nursery more than we attended services and worked more than we worshiped. Back on the search my sister moved an hour away so we started looking for someplace in the middle. We would often pass a community church with an intriguing billboard message and finally stopped for a visit. THEY HAD A CRYING ROOM. So we held bubs while we participated in the service. They ran 700 people in each of the 4services the offered but We joined a small group and attended there for the past ten years or so. Although we love the message and music every week, weve never really made friends. Two small groups later we couldn't name 5 people we know. Sad. But worse is bubs can't. We sit with my sister and hubs dad but that's it. We grew up around Christians who we hung out with, had fun with, and who encouraged us. They formed a group we were accountable around and they knew who we were on Sunday morning as well as Friday  night. Bubs can't name a Christian friend. That can't be good.
Over the years I've tried to get the boys to visit a church someone they know might attend but they hate change as much as I do. I even suggested this church back when it came town in the spring but no. Then Monday this church had an awesome float in the parade and some of the boys friends were wearing t shirts with the church logo on them. Hey why don't we visit there? They asked. Yeah why don't we? I countered. So today we all saddled up to try again and it was scary and unfamiliar and exhilarating and I'm not sure what will happen but we stepped. Again. And I'm just thankful we haven't given up on the notion that church might be a place where we live out our lives beside people who know us on Sunday morning and Friday nights. 

Festivities

Scrapbook madness ensues.. I haven't scraped in so long I can't remember where I am. Today I hopped on Kodakgallery.com because they have .10$ prints and... I can't find what I need to print. I am sure I already scraped Christmas but I can't find the album???

I'm starting to get a handle on those summer to do's. We have so much stuff to just sort through, find a place for or get rid of.

The fire works Saturday night here at the lake were marvelous. A spectacular show. Then Monday we went 'into town' for the parade and festival. Bub pretended not to know as he walked around with friends. Later that evening the fireworks lasted 7 minutes. That includes a 2 minute break after apparently someone set off the finale first. Opps. Funny thing. Bville draws over 500 cars out to see the works and then... yikes. Poor showing.

Sunday Bub's, a fishing club friend and I went to my high school best friend's child's bday party at Loveland Riverview Park. Although it was 90 degress it was a wonderful time spent with an old friend who has come so far. Amazing. What a blessing.

Yesterday I tried out water aerobics with a friend. I almost didn't go thinking, "how hard could it be. you can't sweat." Umm. Yeah it was a really hard workout. I was sore this morning so I took Marina for a long walk to warm up for Zumba. Then sweated like a freak at Zumba!

 Somehow I am not in any of the pontoon pictures! We had 5 on our  boat and then hooked up with a smaller boat that needed to unload some people.

 

 Here come the late comers! See those little orbs? I like to think they are the old souls of Lorelei coming to celebrate with us. Or bugs, they could be bugs.

 The boats in front of us enjoying a close up view of the fireworks.

 My Sunday OOTD. Church and party in the park.

 How cute is this older gentleman?

 Can you see those sparkling fingertips celebrating the Fourth?!?

Blueberry season has arrived

My Saturday was...
Blueberry picking

Farmer's Market visit

Consignment looksie

Sonic drive through

This is Yo's new child. She sits up and begs.

 We stopped by her house Thursday after lunch downtown with friends. It is unusual that Hub's is with us so we celebrated!

 Marina loved her float I brought back from Florida. Finally those paws don't puncture!

We took Hub's and the grands to Orange Leaf afterward for deliciousness

 Decisions, decisions...

 Hub's got a hold of the camera and tried to get some new profile pics.

 I wanted to make sure he got the Birks in the pic to gloat once again about finding 4 pair for $20 a piece at a consign by the beach.

 Wednesday the boys got back to work on the fence that has been in progress for the last few years.

 The spices from last Saturday's trip to Findlay.

 and the herbs I picked up there are now planted and thriving...

 Last Saturday we took the pontoon across the lake for festivities at the beach opposite us. The ducks even came to visit.

 Bub's hopped off to go check out the swings and such...